News about George Osborne

Priceless treasures from leading museums now languish in a remote local gallery in Ghana. The Victoria and Albert and the British Museum have lent 32 richly decorated items to descendants of the original owners. But today the pieces, known as the 'Asante Gold', are held in the modest Manhyia Palace Museum in the city of Kumasi, which receives just 80,000 visitors a year, which is a fraction of the 5.8 million who pass through the doors of the British Museum and the 2.7 million who make the trip to the V&A each year. The Manhyia Palace is just one of many foreign galleries hoping to acquire invaluable but 'contested' cultural treasures that take pride of place in British institutions.

Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, who rules the Asante people in the west African country, negotiated a deal for the temporary return of ancestral artefacts from the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Now he hopes to keep hold of the Asante gold for good despite the current Conservative government refusing to change laws which ban museums from repatriating such items overseas permanently. Sir Keir Starmer 's Labour party has been mooted as most likely to give the go-ahead - with experts saying this loan was 'just the beginning' for similar repatriations. Former Labour MP Tristram Hunt has called for overhauls of the British Museum Act 1963 and the National Heritage Act 1983 which currently bar the two museums from permanently returning items to countries where they originated.

After a hard day labouring at his many jobs, George Osborne probably wanted a quiet stroll to his £10 million Notting Hill mansion. So imagine his surprise when the former chancellor stumbled straight on to a movie set featuring Richard E Grant and White Lotus actor Will Sharpe. Mr Osborne, 52, came across the making of Netflix series Too Much - which is being directed by American actress Lena Dunham. One onlooker said: 'George was just there, minding his own business with his ear pods in and then all of a sudden he came face to face with a bunch of actors.

Now that Labour has reasserted its ballot-box superiority in municipal polls and the South Blackpool by-election, it will be hard to escape an intense focus on what a Keir Starmer and Reeves party will do in power. History tells us that when new brooms arrive at the Treasury, there is always a black hole. Pre-election pledges and manifesto promises are as dust when the books are opened. Loopholes, a Reeves favourite, offer many opportunities for piling on the agony.

David Cameron has - playfully - taken aim at his former chancellor George Osborne over the latter's praise for Labour finance chief Rachel Reeves. Last month Mr Osborne, who is now a businessman and postcaster, praised her fiscal conservatism and suggested she was the 'heir to Cameron/Osborne'. This caused a bit of a stir, as Lord Cameron is the Foreign Secretary in a Conservative Government trailing Labour badly in the polls. And it has earned Mr Osborne a gentle rebuke from his friend and former boss. Speaking to ITV on a tour of Asian states Lord Cameron was asked about the analogy.

The latest IHT figure is the third record annual haul in a row and the Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts inheritance tax receipts will reach £9.7 billion a year in 2028/29. The property boom over recent decades plus frozen thresholds are dragging more families into the inheritance tax net, and the Treasury is raking in ever bigger sums as a result.

The Mail on Sunday has learned that former minister Ed Vaizey's names appear on the official document recording the birth of Saudi Arabian political analyst Najah Al-Otaibi's daughter. In a move guaranteed to set Westminster tongues wagging, Najah, 41, who split from newsreader Tim Willcox after two years of marriage, named her Victoria Vaizey Edward Al-Otaibi - containing a reversed version of Edward Vaizey. It should be noted that the former MP for Wantage, Oxfordshire, is not specifically named as the father. Adding to the mystery, that box was left blank by Najah, who often appears on BBC news programmes.

The British Museum is forbidden from returning any of its works of artefacts except under exceptional circumstances. However, in recent years, items have been sent back to their country of origin on so-called "long-term loans." According to the Daily Telegraph, they have seen records that date back to the museum since 2015. Since 2015, the museum has received 12 separate formal requests for items to be returned. Four of them have emerged from foreign governments using 'confidential diplomatic channels' far removed from the spotlight of media campaigns like those seen by the Greek government in recent years. Government and museum communications are ongoing, and the British Museum will not reveal what artefacts were discussed.

EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE HARDCASTLE: The majority of her 600-plus charities are now without a patron eight months after the Queen's death eight months after her. They include the Royal Academy, the Royal Society of Chemistry, the British Veterinary Association, the Royal College of Physicians, the Royal College of Physicians, London Zoo, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, RSPCA, MCC, RADA, the Royal Philharmonic Society, and the Royal Philharmonic Society. The fact that smaller outfits, such as the Jersey Cattle Society and the Queen Victoria Clergy Fund, aren't losing any sleep, however, has irked the big beasts, as the refusal to revive royal patronages has irked them.

China's behavior is described as "completely intolerable" by Foreign Minister Lord Cameron. He should know. It was he who, as Prime Minister in the early 2010s, encouraged closer ties with Beijing. Did all that bowing and scraping win us any serious long-term advantages with Beijing, or have they just regarded our efforts with contempt, exploiting our naivety and mocking us along the way? If the new intelligence is correct, the former is certainly the latter. They look at us, see a nation of soft-bellied layabouts, a bloated service economy, and a society so lazy and ineffective that we can't even teach our own children how to use the toilet properly. They must think we're soft in the head - and frankly who can blame them?

On Sunday, the crowds of London returned to the streets, triggering the closing of the British Museum. Hundreds of protesters masked protesters piled seige to the main gates, barring entry to visitors and trapping others inside. The demonstration was sponsored by an outfit naming itself Energy Embargo For Palestine, yet another Far-Left front group bringing together anti-Israel activists and Just Stop Oil headbangers. They have been able to link the Gaza war to the museum's ten-year sponsorship contract with BP, which has been granted an offshore licence to search for oil and gas in Israeli waters. Protesters waved Palestinian flags and brandished banners featuring "Boycott the British Museum" and "BP fuels colonial genocide" were two of their new favorite buzzwords. The museum was closed on police orders by mid-afternoon and never reopened. The mob had succeeded in deterring people from going about their unlawful activities once more.

Observers have commented on the former prime minister's brisk travel schedule after taking office, with the 57-year-old cruising between European capitals and destinations further afield, including Dubai, Paraguay, and Thailand. Lord Cameron's travel schedule largely reflects the current state of global geopolitics, with Lord Cameron visiting Eastern Europe and the Middle East in his efforts to mobilize support for Ukraine and push for peace in Gaza. However, he has also found the time for more unusual diplomatic trips, including a trip to the Falkland Islands last month, which attracted George Osborne's attention as chancellor in Cameron's cabinet.

Direct Line called the 237p-a-share (roughly £3.2 billion) 'opportunistic'. The unidentified Age fund's investment, according to Sky News, was 'aggressive, unsolicited, and opportunistic.' Ageas shareholders, according to reports, see no point in the arrangement.

Doctoring photographs can be quite revolting, as we'll see. However, trivial stuff can also be irrelevant. Many of us would wish that such pictures of us did not exist. This traumatic school photo from 1962. The horrific holiday snaps from 1968. Is it wicked for us to do what we can to keep other people from seeing them? For example, hundreds of couples who were married during the 1970s fashion desert do not have their wedding photos on display. And who can blame them? I have no idea what the Princess of Wales was up to in her most recent family snap, but I am not sure about the outrage that is intended. The public demands a lot of photographs of the Royal Family, and why not? Half of the company's power comes from the fact that it is a family rather than a gang, a cabinet, or a board of directors. However, families, even Royal ones, aren't always as happy, content, and well behaved as we wish they were.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is facing backlash after cracking down on non-doms, despite fears that this could result in a mass exodus of wealth creators. MPs and businessmen have been warned that the reforms are unlikely to result in the billions promised for the country's coffers, and that the super wealthy will instead migrate to Switzerland, Dubai, and Singapore. "I know people who are still packing their bags," Hotelier Sir Rocco Forte said. As we speak, the exodus is taking place.' People who live in another country can continue paying UK tax on foreign income for up to 15 years. However, Mr Hunt modified the laws on Wednesday, meaning that new arrivals will benefit from this tax break for just four years before being required to pay the same taxes as UK residents from 2025.

Lucy Powell, Labour's Shadow Commons Leader, stumbled into the chaos box. Every week she takes on Penny Mordaunt. It's like watching a goat trot into a minefield. Ms Powell is just another one of banalities' nefarious peddlers. Every apology must be 'grovelling,' according to any dossier'dodgy.' Spell-checking programs are available on computers. Why has no one invented a similar device to remove hackneyed phrases from the Commons speeches of division-two duds? The little goat trotted past the DANGER warnings and neck-bell tinkling, as they do every week. And then, as always, a terrible kaboom and shards of goat meat were released in the air. Poor Ms Powell was obliterated by Ms Mordaunt.

HARDCASTLE: One of the pleasures of being included in the Honours Lists - having a gong bestowed by a Royal Family member - could be a rare occurrence. With the King and the Princess of Wales out of action, a labour shortage has resulted in Lord Lieutenants' drafting to divide the burden. Lord Lieutenant Andrew Tryckish of Berkshire made his first appearance dispensing awards on Sunday. The MBE's recess, who are looking forward to either William or Anne, should have been deflated.

COMMENT by DAILY MAIL: The Chancellor's Budget will have ramifications: for his image, for his beleaguered party, and the future of the United Kingdom.

According to new reports, the property market has remained extremely vibrant during the tenure of various Chancellors in the last 30 years. The survey, in particular, looked at a variety of variables, including monthly transaction volumes and average house price increase under the nine Chancellors since 1997.

EDEN CONFIDENTIAL: When George Osborne (pictured) became chairman of the British Museum, he may have imagined it would be a cosy sinecure a world away from the scandals and bitter arguments he was used to in Westminster. Rather, the Exchequer's Conservative former Chancellor finds himself presiding over yet another controversy - this time over allegations of misogyny.

DAILY MAIL COMMENT: We're entrusting strangers to look after our precious children, grandparents, or partners when they are the most endangered. We must therefore be certain that they will not be exposed to harm by unscrupulous individuals who abuse the system for personal gain. Unfortunately, this esteem is being eroded. Hundreds of care home residents are being looked after by overseas employees, many unqualified and some barely able to speak English as part of a lucrative immigration scam, as the Mail reveals today. Rogue businesses are earning millions by charging migrants up to £20,000 to assist them in finding jobs in the industry and obtain a Home Office work permit.

Clare Lombardelli, the only British economist to hold one of the top positions at a multinational policy center, is the chief economist at the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. So it's just odd that she has returned to the UK as deputy governor of the Bank of England after just a year giving out tips to the OECD's 38 members, who are generally considered the highest of Western capitalism.

Just a few weeks ago, a tax-cutting Spring Budget was forecast as the Chancellor was planning for a General Election. However, it's also unlikely from the noises that are being generated that we will get a spectacular blowout. And maybe that's not even what we need. Rather, I'd argue that Mr Hunt would be better off laying out a bold yet cohesive strategy to solve the illogical mess that our tax system has created.

Sir Lynton Crosby, the Australian strategist who conceived the Conservatives' stunning election victory in 2015, gave me a useful, if painful, lesson on political campaigns. I had just started working for the Scottish National Party. I was invited to speak with Sir Lynton in his Westminster office. I had spent the morning writing down a sequence of talking points I wanted to get across in the hopes of impressing the great man. I kept going on and on. Minutes have passed. As I summarized number 11 on my list of top action items, Sir Lynton sat there nodding patiently.